github

Connection selection

Use authenticated GitHub MCP tools first when they are available in the agent's environment. Detect this by tool availability, without depending on a particular MCP server name. Use the token and direct API instructions below only when GitHub MCP tools are unavailable or when raw API or curl access is explicitly needed.

You have access to an environment variable, GITHUB_TOKEN, which allows you to interact with the GitHub API.

You can use `curl` with the `GITHUB_TOKEN` to interact with GitHub's API. ALWAYS use the GitHub API for operations instead of a web browser. ALWAYS use the `create_pr` tool to open a pull request If the user asks you to check GitHub Actions status, first try to use `gh` to work with workflows, and only fallback to basic API calls if that fails. Examples: - `gh run watch` (https://cli.github.com/manual/gh_run_watch) to monitor workflow runs - `gh pr checks 200 --watch --interval 10` to check until completed.

Windows PowerShell equivalents for the multi-line shell snippets below are in references/windows.md.

If you encounter authentication issues when pushing to GitHub (such as password prompts or permission errors), the old token may have expired. In such case, update the remote URL to include the current token: git remote set-url origin https://${GITHUB_TOKEN}@github.com/username/repo.git

Here are some instructions for pushing, but ONLY do this if the user asks you to:

• NEVER push directly to the main or master branch
• Git config (username and email) is pre-set. Do not modify.
• You may already be on a branch starting with openhands-workspace. Create a new branch with a better name before pushing.
• Use the create_pr tool to create a pull request, if you haven't already
• Once you've created your own branch or a pull request, continue to update it. Do NOT create a new one unless you are explicitly asked to. Update the PR title and description as necessary, but don't change the branch name.
• Use the main branch as the base branch, unless the user requests otherwise
• After opening or updating a pull request, send the user a short message with a link to the pull request.
• Do NOT mark a pull request as ready to review unless the user explicitly says so
• Do all of the above in as few steps as possible. E.g. you could push changes with one step by running the following bash commands:

git remote -v && git branch # to find the current org, repo and branch
git checkout -b create-widget && git add . && git commit -m "Create widget" && git push -u origin create-widget

Writing Pull Request Descriptions

Use the show-me skill when writing or updating a PR description. If it is not available: pick the smallest visual that makes the change clear instead of requiring the user to reconstruct it from prose or the raw diff.

• Follow the repository's PR template and contribution rules.
• Give the PR a plain language title. Focus on what the user needs to see.
• Lead with what changed and why. Show the important before/after with a focused diff, call tree, component/file tree, pseudocode, or Mermaid diagram, as fits the change. Keep the visual next to the short explanation it supports.
• Ground examples in the actual base and head revisions. Name the relevant files or symbols and link to source when helpful.
• Keep simple changes brief; do not force a diagram onto a typo or dependency bump. For a dense UI or design comparison, link a focused HTML artifact when it helps and the host supports it.
• Visual explanations supplement required tests and screenshots; they do not replace evidence that the changed behavior works.

Merging Pull Requests (async merge API)

IMPORTANT: Only merge if the user asks you to, without ambiguity.

GitHub released an async merge API in October 2026; it is now the recommended way to merge PRs programmatically, and the only merge API that supports stacked PRs. It can also add a PR to a merge queue. Prefer it over PUT .../pulls/{n}/merge and the GraphQL mergePullRequest mutation. A GitHub MCP merge tool may still use the older synchronous endpoint; for stacked PRs or merge queues, use the calls below. Docs: https://docs.github.com/en/rest/pulls/pulls#merge-a-pull-request-asynchronously

1. Request the merge (merge_action: default uses the merge queue if the branch has one, else merges directly; or direct_merge / merge_queue). merge_method, commit_title and commit_message apply only to direct merges:

gh api -X PUT repos/<OWNER>/<REPO>/pulls/<PR_NUMBER>/merge-async -f merge_method=squash -f sha=<HEAD_SHA>

2. A 202 returns details.uuid; poll it every few seconds until status is no longer pending:

gh api repos/<OWNER>/<REPO>/pulls/<PR_NUMBER>/merge-async/<UUID>

Final status is merged, enqueued (added to the merge queue, NOT merged yet), or failed (see details.message). A 200 on the PUT means the PR is already merged or queued; a 409 means a merge request is already pending (its UUID is returned).

Handling Review Comments

• Critically evaluate each review comment before acting on it. Not all feedback is worth implementing:
  • Does it fix a real bug or improve clarity significantly?
  • Does it align with the project's engineering principles (simplicity, maintainability)?
  • Is the suggested change proportional to the benefit, or does it add unnecessary complexity?
• It's acceptable to respectfully decline suggestions that add verbosity without clear benefit, over-engineer for hypothetical edge cases, or contradict the project's pragmatic approach.
• After addressing (or deciding not to address) inline review comments, mark the corresponding review threads as resolved.
• Before resolving a thread, leave a reply comment that either explains the reason for dismissing the feedback or references the specific commit (e.g., commit SHA) that addressed the issue.
• Prefer resolving threads only once fixes are pushed or a clear decision is documented.
• Use the GitHub GraphQL API to reply to and resolve review threads (see below).
• After making changes to a PR, verify the title and description still match the content. Update them if the scope, features, or intent changed.

Resolving Review Threads via GraphQL

To resolve existing review threads programmatically:

1. Get the thread IDs (replace <OWNER>, <REPO>, <PR_NUMBER>):

gh api graphql -f query='
{
  repository(owner: "<OWNER>", name: "<REPO>") {
    pullRequest(number: <PR_NUMBER>) {
      reviewThreads(first: 20) {
        nodes {
          id
          isResolved
          comments(first: 1) {
            nodes { body }
          }
        }
      }
    }
  }
}'

2. Reply to the thread explaining how the feedback was addressed:

gh api graphql -f query='
mutation {
  addPullRequestReviewThreadReply(input: {
    pullRequestReviewThreadId: "<THREAD_ID>"
    body: "Fixed in <COMMIT_SHA>"
  }) {
    comment { id }
  }
}'

3. Resolve the thread:

gh api graphql -f query='
mutation {
  resolveReviewThread(input: {threadId: "<THREAD_ID>"}) {
    thread { isResolved }
  }
}'

4. Get the failed workflow run ID and rerun it:

# Find the run ID from the failed check URL, or use:
gh run list --repo <OWNER>/<REPO> --branch <BRANCH> --limit 5

# Rerun failed jobs
gh run rerun <RUN_ID> --repo <OWNER>/<REPO> --failed